Corporal John R. Danley

Yesterday was Veterans Day, but it is observed today because it fell on a Sunday. So it’s not too late to post these front pages of the Lorain Times-Herald from July 1918.

The newspapers tell the story of John Danley, the Marine Corporal who was the first man from Lorain to lose his life in World War I.

There would be many more Lorainites who would die in the conflict, but since Corporal Danley was the first, the city took the news very hard and made plans to honor him.

The front page of the July 9, 1918 Times-Herald reports Danley's death and provides a biography of the man who was born in Cleveland but spent most of his life in Lorain.

The front page recounts his last letter to his family, written on June 11.

Danley wrote, “I have a few minutes to spare and we all have permission to write a short letter. As I write this I am well, but our regiment suffered rather heavily in the last week. I suppose you have read all about that in the papers. We saw some of the real old open warfare. I do not know as yet how the other boys fared.

“Hope all of you are well and happy. This is strenuous writing with shells bursting around here.

“Goodbye with love, Jack.”

The front page of the July 11, 1918 edition of the Times-Herald announces the memorial services for Corporal Danley.

The page also notes that Mayor A. J. Horn was forming a soldiers' and sailors’ commission to create a memorial to the Lorain men fighting in the war. Since there was already a park on the west side of Lorain (Lakeview Park) and there were some in other areas of the city, the Mayor thought that a park on the east side would be most appropriate. The Mayor hoped that a permanent memorial, such as a memorial hall or art museum, could be built.

The front page of the July 13, 1918 Times-Herald announces the creation of the east side park. It states, “The new park on the East Side which will be in the center of the tract containing 240 homes for ship workers, a project made necessary by the war for world democracy, will be named for Corporal John R. Danley, the first Lorain man to die in action during the present war.”

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I’ve written about Corporal Danley before. 

Back in 2014, I posted a small article that included a photo of his final resting place in France. And about a week after that, I wrote about Danley Park here.

Needless to say, the permanent memorial hall or art gallery were never built. 

Corporal John Danley's Obituary in the Typographical Journal

Looking south from the north end of Danley Square

While I haven't had time (since my post last week) to get to the library lately to research Corporal John Danley properly, I did find a little bit online about "the first man from Lorain to give his life for the freedom of the world."

The July 1918 edition of the Typographical Journal, the Official Paper of the International Union of North America, contained the following news item under the heading, "CLEVELAND, OHIO."

"It was with a keen regret that the membership of No. 53 learned of the death of Corporal John Danley, killed in action on the battle front of France, June 14. Mr. Danley was one of the young members of the union, and his genial smile and pleasing personality had gained for him a host of friends among his fellow workers. He came to Cleveland several years ago from Lorain, and worked on the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He, with several other of the younger members, enlisted in the marine corps almost immediately upon the request for volunteers. He had seen more that a year's actual service in France, and the many letters received by his friends tell of the great work being done by the printers in the service. As a testimonial to his memory the city of Lorain, Ohio, his birthplace, has renamed one of its streets, which will hereafter be known as Danley avenue."

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I remember the first time I drove by Danley Square in the late 1980s. I was really impressed by the pretty, parklike setting, but I had no idea who or what it was named after.

The lack of any sort of plaque explaining who Corporal Danley was really should be remedied. As a society, we've finally arrived at a point in time when all of our veterans are finally appreciated. It's only right that we honor the ones from the wars that are rapidly fading away in our collective memories – before it's too late.

Looking north from the south end of Danley Square

Corporal John Danley and Lofton Henderson

In honor of Memorial Day, here's a pair of articles that appeared adjacent to each other (as shown) on the front page of the Lorain Times-Herald on May 7, 1919 – 95 years ago this month.

The top article is about the location of the final resting place of Corporal John Danley, who according to the article was "the first Lorain man to give his life for the freedom of the world." Danley had been killed on the World War I battlefield at Bellau Wood on June 14, 1918. He is buried in a graveyard in France near Lucy-le-Bocage.

Right below the Danley article on the front page of the Times-Herald is an article about a Victory bond sale being conducted by the Boy Scouts. None other than young Lofton Henderson – who would years later also give his life for freedom and become one of Lorain's best known hometown heroes during World War II – had the honor of selling the largest number of bonds so far in the drive.

Let's all keep in mind the true meaning of Memorial Day: to remember and pay tribute to the brave men and women who died while in active military service to our country.

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By the way, I noticed the other day that Henderson Drive is still identified as Henderson Avenue on signs at the intersection of Route 611 and Kansas Avenue. (I first called attention to this back here on the blog. I also contacted the Mayor of Lorain through his website at the time.)

Well, I sent another email through the Mayor's website last week to remind them that it's been almost a year since my last email.

Wouldn't it be great if a replacement sign with the correct street name also included the full name and likeness of Major Henderson? There's plenty of room on that pole for a bigger sign.

Come to think of it, I'm not even sure that there's a sign over on Danley Square honoring Corporal Danley. I guess Lorain might need two signs made.

How about it, Lorain?